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5 Ways to be a Strong Leader in Disruptive Times
Help create stability by establishing new norms–like focusing on results rather than hours.
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Help create stability by establishing new norms–like focusing on results rather than hours.
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Its most effective leaders have a boundless belief in their personal ability to affect positive change.
In just a few weeks, businesses and societies have been upended by COVID-19. This is a defining moment for leaders to steward their organizations, themselves and their families through a crisis of this magnitude and come out stronger on the other side. For nearly a decade, we’ve had the pleasure of working with Mark Miller, Vice President of High-Performance Leadership at Chick-fil-A – working on projects like NEXT (their annual company event), Leadership Development and Customer Experience projects. Mark is a best-selling author of books including Chess not Checkers, Win the Heart, and The Secret. I recently caught up with Mark (virtually) and he shared some timely advice for leaders.
I’ll speak to what will probably become a theme throughout this piece: We have a lot to be thankful for. Obviously, it is a very challenging time for our Operators and their team members with closed dining rooms and mall restaurants; but overall, we are thankful we can continue to serve our customers.
The demands are multi-faceted. We want to do everything we can to protect our team members who continue to serve customers. We don’t want to do anything to spread the virus. As it relates to Operators, they are trying to serve our customers under these challenging circumstances.
Self-care or the lack thereof is a big concern at any time, but especially now. Rest is important; so is exercise. Connection with others is also vital – even if virtual. Call a friend, text a colleague, schedule a Zoom call. Stay rested, connected and fit to lead. Regarding what to avoid, my encouragement is to avoid dwelling on what is out of your control. Don’t deny it – just don’t dwell on it. I would suggest leaders focus their time, energy and best thinking on things you can control (or at least influence). There’s too much to do to waste effort on things that are out of your control.
Thanks to the hard work of the Prophet team, we are now forming a point of view on this topic. It has proven to be a fascinating and complex question! Most people would agree on the things leaders do: Communicate vision, build teams, drive innovation, build strong relationships, produce results, walk the talk, etc. We are trying to crack the code on what the most effective leaders do differently. The work is still underway, but I feel confident that our final conclusions will include a couple of important things. One, the best leaders appear to value and create margin more than “typical” leaders. These women and men understand it is in this space where they clarify their thinking, sort out everchanging priorities, evaluate current strategies, assess the effectiveness of current plans and re-center themselves around what matters. Without sufficient margin, we have found many leaders “stuck in action.”
The more complex the challenges, the more demanding the circumstances; the greater the consequences, the more margin matters. Leaders attempting to navigate in crisis need every possible resource at their disposal – beginning with the time, energy and space to think. Margin enables leaders to do their best work when it matters most.
Another characteristic we’ve discovered in the most effective leaders is they believe they can! This is not an unbridled optimism, but it is a boundless belief in their personal ability to affect positive change. Our psychologist friends would call this an internal locus of control.
In my book Win the Heart, I outline four elements required for a person to feel cared for. All apply in pre- and post-COVID-19.
Connection – Stay connected. Yes, it is harder today, but never more important. I have made this part of my “shelter in place” daily routine. Who can you connect with today?
Affirmation – People want and need to feel seen and valued. Look for ways to affirm them and their value as a person. Again, you may find this difficult under our current circumstances, but this is vital. Many people are anxious about the future – their health, their loved ones, their finances, their job. Who can you affirm and encourage today?
Responsibility – Sharing real responsibility has always been a great way to demonstrate trust, but is often overlooked as a way to raise someone’s level of care for their work. What work, or better yet, what decision, can you delegate to someone today?
Environment – This is a broad category reflecting everything from physical and psychological safety to the proper tools and training required for the task at hand. In today’s world, many of our organizations are cutting expenses, as we should. However, are there any tools or resources you can provide for remote work that might prove helpful? When leaders enhance the work environment, it communicates care.
Bottom line: When leaders and organizations provide the elements of CARE, people care more.
A: My advice is to do what the best leaders always do: stay grounded in the things that will not change — your brand’s purpose, vision, values— and hold the rest loosely. As my friend Jim Collins popularized years ago: protect the core and stimulate progress.
Please don’t overlook your own team members. We are seeing unprecedented levels of creativity and innovation within our own team. If you have a coach, use them. If you don’t and now doesn’t feel like the time to hire one, consider creating a peer learning group. I am part of a group that’s been meeting twice a month for over twenty years. Our topic for two decades? Leadership. We’ve conducted our last two meetings via Zoom. The only thing required is a few folks willing to get together with the explicit intent to help each other grow. It’s been a game-changer for me.
Read all the books you can. If reading is not your thing, use Audible. Pick an area you want to know more about and dig in.
“This is a defining moment for leaders to steward their organizations, themselves and their families through a crisis of this magnitude and come out stronger on the other side.”
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Your team may have never needed your leadership more than they do right now. Yes, there is probably a lot you don’t know. However, even when you cannot provide certainty (and who can at this point?) you can always provide clarity. Be clear on what you stand for, be clear on what you believe in, be clear on what you can and cannot control, be clear on how much you really do care about your team, and finally, be clear on your intent to use this crisis to emerge stronger than you were before.
For over 40 years Mark has served Chick-fil-A, their Operators, and leaders around the world elevate their performance. You can learn more about him and see his latest thinking on his website.
Read more perspectives on leading at a time of crisis here.
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Clients and colleagues share positive trends emerging from this difficult time.
It’s difficult to decipher exactly when the COVID-19 storm will lift, and while many around the world stare into crystal balls looking for answers on this, I have spent some time speaking to clients, colleagues and friends to understand what the most pertinent shifts surfacing are and how they’re set to impact our future for the better, creating opportunities and – finally – some positivity. Here are my predictions:
Finally, we will understand the full power of remote working technology. Forced into a situation where we have all had to become more experienced in hosting and participating in virtual meetings, we will start to use technology in more positive ways to bring people together. Working remotely will undoubtedly continue to play a large role, but physical interactions and collaborations will become more meaningful, human and special. Ultimately, the collaboration will be less exhausting and more natural, and a boon for both our physical and mental health.
All companies have had to look at how they protect themselves and their employees, and as a result, many have had to update or even re-invent their business models. It’s because of this we can expect to see exciting new products and services coming out. Products and services that will be considerate and make a value-adding difference in our lives and the new environment we now live in.
Helping us to act more swiftly and reduce time to market, the untapped potential of production facilities to go beyond their original purpose will be realized. Making us more independent from global supply chains, robots and algorithms, can not only help in crisis situations but also launch innovative new products faster and at a lower price.
“Ultimately, the collaboration will be less exhausting and more natural, and a boon for both our physical and mental health.”
Like the 2008 crisis before, we will see governments intervene with the economy, offering support and becoming shareholders of big corporations. Eventually, society will make its peace with capitalism light and accept that it could in fact be a more sustainable solution, something that is not contrary but could even be healthy for a democratic system.
We fully acknowledge that a slower life, and a slower economy, helps to save our planet. Everyone will be more open to implementing environmentally sustainable measures in their lives – in both the private and corporate sectors. Eco-radicalists will take a back seat as the world aligns around a joint purpose to act responsibly now, and for the generations to come.
Health is wealth and it’s for that reason that healthcare will become more important than ever. Combined with the opportunities presented by cutting-edge technology, it will be the ultimate destination for investors, but there will also be a noticeable shift as society takes a more vested interest in developments. Modern healthcare will be accessible and fun – not only for a niche set of hipsters but for everyone. People will be much more willing to divulge information for individual data collection and analysis to make healthcare even better.
Local communities support us, and we support the community in return. We will have stronger relationships with our local shops and will again enjoy the quality of their products, the people behind those businesses, and be willing to pay premium prices for their produce and products.
Feelings of FOMO (Fear of missing out) will be a thing of the past as appreciation for time alone and/or with few close relatives or friends increases. JOMO (Joy of missing out) will become a reality and introverts will – for the first time – have more energy than extroverts. Intimate events will see a significant increase in demand and mass tourism, which has disturbingly plagued many destinations for so long, will finally die.
We see it everywhere at the moment, people selflessly leaning in where they can. Considering the magnitude of this crisis, the joint helplessness of nations has also brought with it a feeling of togetherness: a united front. The need and appreciation for higher love from families, friends and businesses is sticky and staying with us.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Within all this gloom, it’s important to focus on the potential positive changes and opportunities around the corner to give us hope and determination in order to beat this crisis. I can’t wait to see what other things could become the new normal once COVID-19 relinquishes its grip.
Read more of Prophet’s perspectives on leading in a time of crisis.
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Digital powerhouses like Airbnb, Salesforce and Dollar Shave Club demonstrate the transformative power of subcategories.
It’s been nearly 20 years since I started working with my mentor and friend David Aaker. Dave inspired me to write my first book, Brand Asset Management and my second, with my Prophet partner in crime, Michael Dunn, called Building the Brand Driven Business. Dave remains a shining light in helping all of us think of brands as true assets that cannot only unlock true accretive enterprise value but can be also leveraged as a strategic north star in helping a company reach its longer-term growth aspirations.
“To grow you need to become the exemplar brand to position, scale, and build barriers.”
David’s ability to evolve his business acumen, while grounding it into his key landmark idea – brand relevance – has made him an icon in the eyes of generations of marketers like myself. His 17th and latest book, Owning Game-Changing Subcategories: Uncommon Growth in the Digital Age, tackles brand-building amidst digital transformation – a topic that could not be more important today.
As organizations and brands face unprecedented change, opportunities and challenges (i.e. coronavirus), they must turn to digital to continue to grow. Dave and I had a (virtual) catch-up recently to learn more about his book and what marketing leaders can gain by creating “must-haves” in the digital age.
I observed in category after category— from Japanese beers to automobiles to computers— bursts of growth were almost always explained by the formation or reframing of a subcategory created by a new or improved customer experience or brand relationship. It almost never was caused by a “my brand is better than your brand” strategy. So, I felt that there would be value in a compact book that explained why that assertion was true and how to implement a subcategory growth strategy.
Of course, digital is putting subcategory growth strategies on steroids by enabling subcategories and their exemplar brands to pop up more often and grow at incredible rates. I knew that I needed to factor in digital’s prominent role into the book’s insights as it is a true accelerator in both overall brand and the use of subcategory growth.
The first was Asahi Super Dry which immediately took 10 share points from Kirin because it defined a new subcategory with a new taste AND a young, cool personality. Then there was the Chrysler minivan, which created and owned the minivan subcategory for 15 years with no competition. Enterprise Rent-A-Car became, for decades, the exemplar and only relevant brand for a subcategory that targeted an underserved market, those with a car under repair.
My favorite brands of the digital age include Airbnb, Dollar Shave Club and SalesForce.com. Each developed a new subcategory and customer experience and then expanded and enhanced that experience over time. Each also created a persona and brand relationship that delivered energy, passion, and creativity. Airbnb inspired and enabled the owner/managers to be entrepreneurial hosts. Dollar Shave Club and SalesForce.com both burst onto the scene as a feisty underdog ready to take on the established giants with an irreverent sense of humor.
There are four takeaways.
First, real growth comes from relevant subcategory creation, not from “my brand is better than your brand” competition based upon differentiation.
Second, to grow you need to become the exemplar brand to position, scale, and build barriers. Unlike other innovation strategy books, this book recognizes the role of brand building that makes a new subcategory come to life and win the day both win the short term and over time.
Third, brand communities in the digital age are an important way for customers to become involved in the subcategory and bond with the brand and others that share a common interest and/or activity. Brand communities can be built around B2B products or even at companies with ‘commoditized’ products or services but a social program that has relevance and energy like that illustrated by Dove’s self-esteem initiatives.
Fourth, digital has put subcategory creation on steroids through the Internet of Things (IoT), e-commerce, social media and websites, and brand communities.
The concept of brand equity is the same. It is brand visibility, brand associations, and the size and strength of the customer base. And the process involved in creating and building brands is much the same as well.
One change is the enhanced role of higher brand purpose, particularly social higher purposes. Employees, especially, younger ones, need motivation that raises above increasing sales and profits. And customers increasingly value a higher purpose as part of a brand relationship.
Another is the power of digital—the IoT impact on offerings, e-commerce and social media providing customer access, and brand communities all have created a more dynamic marketplace, accelerated innovation and new subcategory formation. The digital era makes it more challenging to create messaging that breaks through. One answer is to package content into stories that involve, entertain, engender emotion, intrigue etc. in order to attract attention, change perceptions and avoid counter-arguing.
In my view, digital transformation has an important strategic role to play in marketing and organizational strategy. Digital can enable the creation and success of new subcategories providing strategic growth platforms that become the basis of strategic vitality and success. Too often the focus is on the tactical role of digital. Its exciting to see the way Prophet is changing to help our clients with their digital transformations.
Being relevant means being visible and credible with respect to a subcategory. So, it is context-specific. A brand that is relevant to automobiles does not mean it is relevant to compact hybrids. Becoming the exemplar brand is critical because it is not only the one positioning, scaling and building barriers, but its status as the subcategory representative makes it the most relevant or even the only relevant brand.
In this digital age, the road to relevance almost always needs to involve digital-enabled communication to provide both visibility and credibility and a website to represent the brand message in all its multiple dimension richness. And digital enables brand communities, a loyalty driver, to thrive.
My purpose and my brand has been to encourage organizations to manage for the long-term by building brand assets that will be the basis of their future success. That has not changed even though digital has expanded the challenge and enabled new routes to that goal. My brand also involves aspirational process elements such as research-based ideas, rigorous conceptual thinking, and humor.
Look out for David Aaker’s book wherever books are sold, including online and e-book retailers. Learn more about Owning Game-Changing Subcategories and reach out if you’d like to connect with David or any other experts from Prophet.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
While many of the principles of modern branding remain the same, digital continues to make some more powerful than ever. The right subcategories can add rocket fuel to growth strategies.
REPORT
Digital assistants—whether embodied in a voice agent, a bot or both—change the way we think about brands.
The evolving COVID-19 pandemic has thrust us all into a new, urgent reality, one that—perhaps permanently—is challenging assumptions about how we live and work. From a business perspective, the pandemic is rapidly exposing the vulnerabilities in our strategies, systems and processes, and accelerating our reliance on digital systems that scale and connect where people cannot.
In this context, digital assistants such as chatbots and voice agents have a valuable role to play. They can support business resilience and reduced operational expenses, freeing up service and support representatives to focus on higher urgency, more sophisticated customer interactions; deliver needed information and services; become a source of “voice-of-the-customer” insight; or provide a moment of humanity and helpfulness when customers need it most.
The report that follows lays out strategic and brand guidelines for designing and activating digital assistants. We hope you find it valuable as you navigate this challenging time.
Susan Etlinger & Darcy Muñoz
April 8, 2020
Digital assistants — whether embodied in a voice agent, a chatbot, or a combination — change the way we think about brand, from a generally static and visual experience to one that is dynamic and conversational. They unlock new strategic possibilities for customer and ecosystem engagement, and, as a result, raise questions about how brands should sound and behave in dynamic, often unpredictable situations. Finally, they compel us to address questions of brand architecture, identity, behaviors, language choices, movement, and tone in an unprecedented way.
This report, based both on independent research and direct consulting experience with global brands, addresses the opportunities of digital assistants and the conversational technologies that make them possible. We focus on conversational brand strategy, the key elements of persona development, and how to build engaging and trustworthy conversational experiences. Finally, we include a checklist to help business leaders plan for the risks and opportunities of incorporating conversational technologies into a well-considered brand strategy.
Is your organization well-positioned to deliver strategic, on-brand and trustworthy customer experiences using digital assistants?
Take our assessment to find out.
Download the full report below.
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Colleagues share the phrases that are helping their people most in these tough times.
We are all learning to adjust to a new reality: adding new skills; making new connections; uncovering new opportunities; adapting to be more present virtually – and none of it is easy.
At Prophet, our culture is stronger than ever because our teams are stronger than ever. It can be difficult to know how to keep your teams inspired and engaged at these times, so I asked the leaders at Prophet to share their secrets to success. Here is what they are saying to their teams right now:
You can’t take care of others if you can’t take care of yourself. Encourage your team to get the basics sorted out, take breaks and center themselves. Sometimes the best way to connect is to disconnect. Make sure they know that their well-being is paramount.
We are all in this together. Check in on everyone on a regular basis. Share online resources on new ways of working. Recognize what’s working well. Try daily stand-ups: they are a great way to actively listen, prioritize and understand what’s standing in your team’s way.
The need for purpose does not go away, in fact, it may be more meaningful than ever. Spend some time with your team discussing your organization’s purpose. Remind each and every one of them of the key role they play in delivering on it and explore ways to refresh it in the current context.
Working from home is going to continue indefinitely. Be prepared for change and don’t be unnerved by it, we’re seeing a huge economic impact with revenue streams in extraordinary flux. Take the time to highlight moments where the team has successfully adapted to the unknown.
Homeschooling, elderly parents, cranky roommates: you may not understand everything your teams are going through – or how much longer routine tasks take. Allow extra time to get things done. Pair teammates with similar challenges to troubleshoot.
“We are all learning to adjust to a new reality.”
Reassuring employees that they are covered on their health insurance can go a long way to reducing anxiety. Point employees to assistance programs where they can get help. And encourage teams to offer help to each other and to their community. Generosity combats anxiety.
We are living online, from dawn to dusk. Pierce the virtual wall by starting or finishing every conversation with something personal. How are you feeling? What’s on your mind? How can we help? Not only does this give people a sense of community, but it also teaches them new skills, which we may all be needing for a while.
Your teams are close to customers. They see what competitors are doing. They have ideas on how to respond. Find the time to brainstorm on the market opportunities that are emerging from the COVID-19 crisis. It will be fun and potentially profitable.
Recognizing contribution and celebrating progress are essential in these tough times. We need these rays of light to shine through in what can only be classed as a less than bright period. See it as more than a pat on the back, it’s a great way to extract learnings and replicate success.
Include teams in your decision-making. If your organization needs ideas for quick wins, run a digital hackathon. If you are thinking about shifting roles and responsibilities, share a Google worksheet. If you are thinking about a workforce reduction, ask employees how they might approach it.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Some of these seem obvious. Some may be new. But they all try to answer the same question: How can we be socially connected while physically distanced? Your teams have the answer. Just ask.
Interested to learn more about how to keep your employees inspired and engaged during challenging times? Get in touch.
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Companies like Target and REI are finetuning what they say–and how they say it–to make people feel safer.
Brands with strong voices can lift us out of our fears, reassure us that life will move forward and assist us as we continue to embrace major change together. More practically, brands can drive clarity around important topics, like new safety practices, inventory availability or even business closures.
A distinct brand voice helps a company elevate its message and show the world who they are and what they stand for. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the way brands use their voices to communicate with us is more salient than ever.
It feels comforting to us, as verbal branders, to notice the brands that are doing it right. The ones who have used their brand voices to connect with their audiences and express who they are in a meaningful, lasting way. We drew helpful insights by evaluating how brands reacting at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic – communicating in a way that both comforted their consumers and supported their business.
While brands often have the responsibility of steering the conversation in their category, it is perfectly OK to ask customers what they want to hear.
Reformation, a sustainable clothing brand, chose a direct communication style to connect with their audience, ending an update with refreshing candor. “Lastly, we’re not exactly sure what is appropriate for a company like ours to be talking and posting about right now. What’s resonating with you? Do you still want to hear about new collection launches and sustainability-related stuff…? Please let us know.” This created a refreshing moment of candor that felt on-brand for Reformation.
Some brands are using this time to reflect on their mission and values.
Target frames its steps to protect employees and customers by stating a core promise of the brand. Chairman and CEO of Target Brian Cornell stated, “…a commitment to help all families is at the heart of Target’s purpose. Our goal is to be here for you and keep navigating through uncertainty together – and we will do everything in our power to live up to that promise.”
“The way brands use their voices to communicate with us is more salient than ever.”
Through this lens, Target’s actions, such as designating their early hours as a sanctioned time for the elderly to shop or enacting back-up care benefits for parents and caregivers, become proof points of its enduring purpose.
Many brands are well-positioned to connect with their audience about the emotional impact this hardship is having on their lives.
Zola, a wedding registry company, primarily serves engaged couples. Right now, much of their audience is scrambling to make alternate arrangements or postpone their weddings.
Zola has sent several emails to communicate plans to support their audience, including setting up a help hotline to call for advice. One message rings clear across all channels: “If your wedding has been affected, we’ll do anything we can to help”.
The intentional use of the word “anything” subtly mirrors their tagline, “anything for love,” which is displayed under the signature of every email. Here, Zola is stretching beyond a registry to be a helpful resource in a challenging time.
Retailers are uniquely challenged with making tough business decisions and communicating them in a sensitive way.
Retail and recreation company REI stood their ground as community leaders by calmly communicating the temporary closing of their stores. The brand, which is well known for their unique take on consumerism habits (most notably, their Black Friday #OptOutside initiative), framed their announcement as a thoughtful decision to protect the community, rather than their business, saying “…there are more important things than business right now—we owe that to one another.” The letter ends with, “be well and take care of one another.” It’s simple but authentic to the REI brand.
Kin Euphorics, a non-alcoholic social tonics brand, is deeply rooted in social connection and finding enlightened, healthy ways to connect. Their brand voice has an undeniable playfulness, which they brought to life by renaming social distancing as “Solitude Scaries,” playing off the phrase “Sunday Scaries.”
This pinch of playfulness feels on brand and is a simple way to ease the intensity of the stressor and create a sense of community.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Whenever faced with hardship, brands have an opportunity to connect with their audience to reassure and comfort. This pandemic has invited us to consider the unique and powerful ways brands can wield their voice to help us feel better—and move forward.
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They don’t just add to a brand’s credibility. They bring together people with shared passions and purpose.
A fifth key topic in the book Owning Game-Changing Subcategories is brand communities that are enabled or enhanced by websites and social media. A major and often overlooked contribution of digital to business strategy is brand communities—groups of people that bond because of shared interest or passion in something connected to a brand.
Consider, for example, the community experience of the buyers and sellers on Etsy. They bond with each other through crafting and homemade goods, and with Etsy and its supporting programs. The affinity is strong and lasting and provides an Etsy “must-have.”
People hunger for connection and a brand community delivers. Brand communities have been around forever. The Harley Owners Group (HOG) was founded in 1983. However, digital technology has radically enhanced the power and relevance of communities, allowing the membership base to quickly expand geographically and demographically by leveraging digital tools not available to HOG members of the early ‘80s.
“People hunger for connection and a brand community delivers.”
A brand community can be offering-focused, centered around the buying and using experience. That was the case for communities formed at Salesforce.com (where members seek to improve their use of the Salesforce.com software), at LEGO (where LEGO builders interact) and at the Marriott Vacation Club (with members who live for travel and to experience the Marriott vacation options).
If a brand lacks an offering-driven following, it may develop a shared interest that fits the brand to form the locus of a community. That was the case at the Sephora Beauty Insider (which centers on skincare and beauty), Nike Run Club (work-out programs) and the Dove “self-esteem” movement (a shared passion for inner beauty). Such communities also can lead to social benefits created by the involvement of like-minded customers.
Brand communities help exemplar brands and their subcategories by:
The e-book version of Owning Game-Changing Subcategories is now available. The book will be available April 7, 2020.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Brands that encourage communities grow and achieve relevance faster, uniting like-minded people around shared passion points. Whether it’s cooking, fitness or gaming, communities help people belong to something larger.
WEBCAST
In times of uncertainty, our research probes what makes some leaders feel strong while others struggle.
37 min
As organizations face difficult choices in response to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, Charlene Li, author of The Disruption Mindset and senior fellow at Altimeter, a Prophet company, discusses the strategies business leaders can deploy during disruptive times in her webinar series, “Leading in Times of Crisis”. Watch the replays and access the presentation slides for the webinars “How to be a Strong Leader in Times of Crisis”, “Operating in the New Normal” and “Creating a Culture Capable of Thriving with Disruption.”
Watch the webinar replay to learn about five ways to help leaders navigate these trying times. Presentation slides can be accessed here. Please feel free to share and utilize with Attribution to Altimeter.
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Watch the webinar replay for insights on what leaders should do and how they can prepare for operating successfully in a post-crisis world. Slides from the webinar are available here.
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Watch the webinar replay to learn about the key principles a disruptive organization can deploy to create a culture of change. Webinar slides are available here for download.
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Learn more about how Altimeter and Prophet can help you and your organization. Our offerings include:
Interested in a conversation with Charlene or someone from Altimeter? Please get in touch today.
BOOK
FRED GEYER
Sustained, profitable growth is increasingly uncommon for B2B companies as they face changing market dynamics and the threat of digital disruption. This book guides B2B leaders along a step-by-step path to uncommon growth through three transformative shifts:
Prioritizing customers over technology is the key to success.
The current paradigm of technology-led transformation is a recipe for failure. Successful digital transformation puts technology at the service of customers.
Rich case studies from Maersk, Michelin, Adobe and Air Liquide with best practices from IBM, Salesforce.com, Johnson & Johnson, ThyssenKrupp, and scores of leading B2B companies to illustrate in this book how putting customers at the heart of digital transformation drives uncommon growth.
Vincent Clerc
CEO, Maersk Ocean & Logistics
“A thought provoking exploration of three crucial transformational shifts for B2B companies.”
David Aaker
Renowned brand strategist and bestselling author of Owning Game Changing Sub-Categories
“This book illuminates the secret sauce of digital transformation in the B2B space: the thrust should come from customers and how digital could improve their experience and relationship with the brand.”
Dr. Lars Brzoska
Chairman of the Board of Management, Jungheinrich AG
“This is a great guide to applying best practices to the formidable challenge of digital transformation in complex markets and supply chains. It provides the tools leaders need to move ahead.”
Lindy Hood
Chief Customer Experience Officer, Zurich Financial North America
“By providing case examples and step by step assistance in determining where to play, how to win, what to do and who to win, this book fulfilled my need for inspiring and pragmatic transformation guidance.”
Fred Geyer is a senior partner at Prophet. He has helped B2B clients in the financial services, healthcare, and technology industries – including Zurich Financial, AXA, Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices, Medtronic, and Avery Dennison – undertake customer-first transformations and address the challenges of digital disruption. Fred’s prior experience as president of Crayola Canada and chief marketing officer, North America, of Electrolux Floor Care, enables him to bring a practitioner’s perspective to making digital transformation work in the real world.
Joerg Niessing is a member of the faculty at INSEAD and is a globally recognized expert and strategic advisor on digital transformation, digital strategy, customer-centricity, and data analytics. He is the program director of INSEAD’s flagship programs “B2B Marketing Strategies” and “Leading Digital Marketing Strategy.” Over the past five years, Joerg has engaged with more than 3,000 executives from a wide range of companies in Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, and Asia, including Google, Kone, Roche, Maersk, Michelin, IBM, Thales, PwC, and Kion. Joerg’s prior experience as head of Prophet’s Insight and Analytics practice, along with his previous work as a marketing data scientist, inform his insights on ensuring that digital transformations are data-driven, customer-centric, and drive sustainable growth.
Want to speak to Fred about how to become more consumer-centric and implement the essential shifts needed to unlock growth? Contact us today. And if you’re a leader looking for more insights into the B2B sector then visit the B2B Digital Transformation resource hub here.
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Targeting, messaging, content and sharper value propositions can all trigger growth.
This is a time for every organization to re-examine its priorities for the next few weeks and even the next few quarters. Your customers’ needs, your partners, your employees, the world overall. Marketers, in particular, may choose to shift messaging, spend or delay initiatives, but it doesn’t mean to stop communicating—or to stop leading. Now’s the time to find your voice, demonstrate empathy and reinforce relationships you’ve worked hard to build. This is marketing’s time, so let’s take a look at how to adjust your marketing priorities.
Take this time to reflect on how you can help, and then take action. Help both your customers and employees acknowledge and manage their primary fear: staying healthy and keeping loved ones safe. Support them by providing structure and ways to fill time. Encourage them to connect to one another. Provide ways to practice gratitude for those guiding us through this. And finally, help people remember we will persevere.
While we haven’t experienced a moment exactly like this before, through our work helping clients transform their marketing strategies we can identify at least eight levers every marketer has, and shifts one might make now:
“Now’s the time to find your voice, demonstrate empathy and reinforce relationships you’ve worked hard to build.”
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FINAL THOUGHTS
Whether you are re-evaluating your marketing across one, five, or all of the above measures, remember this is a shifting situation. It’s important to be agile yet calm. Steadfast and strategic.
If you need help prioritizing which levers to pull, and what your moves might be? We’re here to help. Drop your questions, or ideas, into the comments or reach out directly here.
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Grit, empathy, generosity and fierceness–these scary times are eliciting some of humanity’s best traits.
Like many others, we at Prophet are intensely focused on the rapid rise of COVID-19. And as this virus spreads in new and unexpected ways, our first concerns are–of course–for human safety.
Our worst fears are the most intimate. We’re worried about our own health and protecting our families, especially the very old and the very young. And we’re increasingly concerned with the well-being of those in all our communities. Coworkers. Neighbors. Clients. Friends. Family at a distance.
As the days continue, many of us are facing other fears. Ones focused on financial security – the health of our businesses and the livelihoods of our teams. Many of us are trying not to voice that concern when lives are on the line. But it is there – and for those of us who guided businesses through the economic upheaval of 2008, 2001, or even the early ‘90s and ‘80s, we understand that now more than ever, it is imperative to be a strong leader to help our organizations survive, and maybe even thrive.
Leading in the face of disruption requires a mix of characteristics that are difficult to harness, even when your business is at its strongest. Grit and empathy. Agility and decisiveness. Creativity and rigor. Generosity and fierceness. We need to bring our “A” game each moment, inspiring and drawing inspiration from teams all around us. If we can, we will all find a way through this, together.
“When you find yourself drifting, draw on your strengths and lean into a growth mindset.”
For more than 20 years, we have been studying how organizations, brands and leaders source growth in the face of disruption. Growth that is purpose-led, innovative, relevant and sustaining. By leaning into our organization’s core values and capabilities, by listening hard to our customers and stakeholders and by understanding how their rapidly shifting contexts are creating new needs, we are finding better ways to serve. We are charting new paths.
We’re already starting to embrace new innovations and shifts. Special shopping hours for seniors, take-out 5-star meals, the explosion of telemedicine and distance learning, yoga streamed “live”, 3-D printing hackathons to backfill medical device shortages: these hopeful responses are unfolding all around us. Pay attention to these actions that speak to the spirit of humanity, the impact of selfless business and the power of collaborative ingenuity.
When you find yourself drifting, draw on your strengths and lean into a growth mindset. Human-centered, digitally powered, purpose-led – find your way to emerge from the Covid-19 crisis stronger and more confident than ever.
Stay healthy and safe,
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